---

30 Apr 2003 : Column 394W—continued

INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Secondments

Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many individuals have been seconded to her Department from (a) the private sector, (b) NGOs and (c) other, in each case listing (i) from which organisation and (ii) dates of secondments, in each year since 2000. [108079]

Clare Short: The following statistics relate to secondments started in each financial year.

Secondedto Dfid	Private Sector	NGO	Other	Organisations	Total
2000–01	—	—	1	1 Other Government Dept	1
2001–02	—	1	6	1 International Alert 2 Other Government Dept 1 Metropolitan Police 1 Crown Agents 2 European Commission	7
2002–03	—	—	15	14 Other Government Dept1 European Commission	15
2003–04	1	—	1	1 RioTinto 1 Other Government Dept	2

Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many civil servants have been seconded from her Department to (a) the private sector, (b) NGOs and (c) other, broken down by (i) grade of civil servants seconded, (ii) location and (iii) dates of secondments, in each year since 1997–98. [108080]

Clare Short: The following statistics relate to secondments started in each financial year. The statistics for years 1998–99 to 2000–01 are based on annual returns to Cabinet Office, and detailed information on location is not available in these returns.

Dates	Private Sector	NGO	Other	Location	Grades	Total
1997–98	—	—	—	—	(3)Band A: 2	2
1998–99	—	—	—	—	Band A: 9(4)Band B: 1	10
1999–2000	—	—	—	—	SCS: 2Band A: 8	10
2000–01	—	—	—	—	SCS: 4Band A: 10Band B: 2	16
2001–02	—	1	29	England: 5Scotland: 1Wales: 1N. Ireland: 0EC: 10Other: 13	SCS: 3 Band A: 25Band B: 2	30
2002–03	1	—	39	England: 14 Scotland: 1Wales: 1N. Ireland: 0EC: 8Other: 16	SCS: 7 Band A: 24 Band B: 7(5)Band C: 2	40
2003–04	—	—	3	England: 2 Scotland: 0 Wales: 0N. Ireland: 0Other: 1	Band A: 2 Band B: 1	3

⁽³⁾ Band A = SEO-G6

⁽⁴⁾ Band B = EO/HEO

⁽⁵⁾ Band C = AA/AO

30 Apr 2003 : Column 395W

FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH AFFAIRS

Accountancy Services

Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the total cost to his Department was for accountancy services in 2002–03. [109496]

Mr. Rammell: The total cost to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office for accountancy services in 2002–03 was £1,772,000.

British Embassy (Dubai)

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will make a statement on the reasons for Raul Fernandes' dismissal from his employment at the British Embassy in Dubai on 5 March 2002. [108632]

Mr. Mike O'Brien: Raul Fernandes has filed his case at the UK employment tribunal. We should not comment until the conclusion of the legal proceedings.

EU Committees

Mr. Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list (a) the names, titles and grades of the officials who sit on the EU committee on the introduction of a uniform format for visas, (b) the number of times, and the dates, on which it has met since January 2002, (c) the agenda items it has considered since January 2002, (d) the decisions it has made since January 2002 and (e) the means used to communicate the decisions to the House. [110278]

Mr. Rammell: The Visa Working Party does not have a fixed membership, but consists of delegates drawn from each of the 15 European Union member states. Since 17 April 2003, delegates from the 10 EU accession states have also been invited to attend most EU committees, including the Visa Working Party, as active observers. The Visa Working Party holds a regular meeting once a month, and occasional extraordinary meetings are held as necessary. It discusses a range of EU-related visa matters relating mainly to the development of a common visa policy under the Schengen acquis, including the introduction of a uniform format visa. This forms part of the process of negotiation which culminates in legislative proposals being considered by the Council of Ministers. Domestically, such legislative proposals are submitted to Parliament under established scrutiny procedures and are considered and reported on by the House of Lords European Union Committee, the House of Commons European Scrutiny Committee, and the devolved administrations in Wales and Scotland.

European Constitution

Mr. Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the implications of the draft European Constitution's proposals on the area of freedom, justice and security for Britain's Schengen opt-out; and if he will make a statement. [109553]

30 Apr 2003 : Column 396W

Mr. Straw: The Future of Europe Convention's proposals on justice and home affairs do not have any implications for the Protocols attached to the current Treaties. Article E of Part Three (General and Final Provisions) of the draft Constitution provides that the protocols shall remain an integral part of the new Treaty. The question of reconsidering these protocols has not been raised in the Convention. The Government position on the protocols relating to our frontier controls has not changed. We will maintain controls at the UK's frontiers.

Interfaith Initiatives

Mr. Win Griffiths: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how much money has been allocated annually to interfaith initiatives in each year since the inception of this policy; and what projects have been supported under this initiative. [110353]

Mr. Rammell: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office, both in London and overseas, actively supports and promotes religious freedom and interfaith relations in a number of ways. This includes the Global Conflict Prevention Pool, the FCO's Sponsored Visits Scheme, and the Human Rights Project Fund, which spent over £57,000 last financial year on projects to promote religious freedom. The Religious Freedom Panel, held twice a year, also helps foster interfaith links and promotes mutual understanding.

The FCO does not have a separate, specific budget for interfaith initiatives.

Iraq

Joan Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the terms of reference are for the US Office of Humanitarian Assistance and Reconstruction in Iraq; and if he will list the people appointed, their nationalities and their gender. [109304]

Mr. Mike O'Brien [holding answer 28 April 2003]: The Office of Reconstruction and Humanitarian Assistance (ORHA) was established by the US Department of Defence to provide transitional civilian authority for post-conflict Iraq, under coalition control. ORHA continues to recruit specialist staff as the scope of the reconstruction of Iraq becomes clearer.

Joan Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if he will list the organisations invited by the USA to attend a conference to discuss the Iraqi Interim Authority; and which are women's organisations. [109320]

Mr. Mike O'Brien [holding answer of 28 April 2003]: The US organisers issued invitations to individual Iraqis, not organisations, to participate in a meeting in Nasiriyah on 15 April. Six Iraqi women were invited; four are reported to have attended and three spoke publicly. The Coalition is committed to promoting the inclusion of women in all phases and at all levels of the reconstruction of Iraq in line with UN Resolution 1325 (October 2000).

30 Apr 2003 : Column 397W

Joan Ruddock: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many of the people flown back to Iraq by the US to work with Ahmad Chalabi are women. [109739]

Mr. Mike O'Brien [holding answer 29 April 2003]: We have no information on how many of Chalabi's group are women.

Public Relations

Mr. Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what budget in financial year 2002–03 his Department has for outside public relations and marketing. [93868]

Mr. MacShane: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office budgeted £327,529 (including VAT) for outside public relations and marketing in FY 2002–03.

---